Why Europe needs one voice on energy efficiency

Date: 30/03/06

Before Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs began proposing an extension in EU policymaking powers for the first time in more than a decade, he had set himself a more modest energy task.

The Green Paper on a common EU energy policy could lead to Europe-level decisions being taken in an area that was previously left under the control of national governments, something that has not happened since the 1992 Maastricht treaty.

Although a decision to draw up the energy paper was only taken at the end of last year, Piebalgs already had his eye trained on widespread concerns about energy supply and climate change.

Last June the commissioner published another energy Green Paper - on improving energy efficiency in Europe. Reducing by 20% the amount of energy wasted through inefficient products, vehicles and buildings, said the paper, would save Europe EUR 60 billion a year.

The 20% target and subsequent savings are also in the new Green Paper, but this time as part of a much bigger picture. Energy efficiency is just one of several ideas on which the EU should speak with "a common voice", according to the Commission.

Speaking to a European Voice conference last week (23 March) Piebalgs pointed out that any amount of work done to promote renewable energy would make no difference to the amount of conventional energy needed if demand continued to rise as it does today.

"We have made progress with renewables but now we consume more," explained the commissioner. "In fact energy efficiency is part of the energy mix."

"In today's world, the demand side, not the supply side, is the problem...the supply side is managed by the market. The demand side is more challenging - it is much easier to build a new gas pipeline."

An action plan to follow the efficiency Green Paper is due this summer.

The EU has already gone some way to boosting energy efficiency, last July agreeing a directive on 'energy using products'. The directive sets environmental design requirements for common electrical products.

The Commission has until next year to decide what the first appliances affected should be.

For the moment energy efficiency labelling is the norm, with several electrical appliances having to be labelled from A to G, according to their energy efficiency for sale in the EU. Products affected by the A to G scale are ovens, lamps, dishwashers, air conditioning units, washing machines and tumble dryers.

New top efficiency categories A+ and A++ were introduced for fridges and freezers in 2004, to discourage manufacturers from resting on their laurels when it emerged that a fifth of products in this category on the EU market were already labelled A.

Article reports on the European Commission's activities in the field of energy efficiency.
Article is part of a European Voice Special Report, 'A Common EU Energy Policy'.

European Commission: DG Energy and Transport: Green Paper on Energy Efficiency or Doing More With Less http://ec.europa.eu/comm/energy/efficiency/index_en.htm

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